irishwhiskey: blog 
irishwhiskey's blog
alarm sounded over wake firefighter shortage
Published May. 12, 2008Wake County states on its webpage about our County Fire Program,
"How does the Fire Protection Service District affect volunteer firefighters in Wake County?
Wake County government and citizens fully recognize, need and value the services of our volunteers. One of the primary roles of the Fire Commission is to develop and implement firefighter and volunteer incentive, retention and recruitment programs. Funding for these programs comes from the Fire Protection Service Tax District. The purpose of implementing these programs is to recognize and reward the hard work and dedication of our county volunteers."
I must ask, what has the County Government done to create an environment of volunteer incentives? Are the current incentives, enough to attract people with an interest in volunteering their time to the fire service enough? Has the County of Wake honestly offered incentives to maintain our Volunteer Firefighters? Would additional incentives attract volunteers or at least retain the volunteers that we have/had in Wake County? What kind of cost would such a program cost the county in comparison to the addition of 200 paid/career/full-time firefighters?
The information shared in this article tends to make me believe that our Wake County Fire Protection is deteriorating without putting in place paid personnel. If that be the case, why have we not seen any news media related to the needs of those in our County not being met? Where are the citizens who are unhappy with the current service? Reference to Garner Fire Department's improvement in response times in the article ... why were Garner's reponse times initially poor? Is that because attention was not given to retention and recruitment of volunteers?
Has anyone questioned what type of Volunteer rosters and involvement the County Fire Departments have at this time? Are there certain departments which are meeting the needs with volunteers better than others? What happens when paid personnel are put into place? Is this a retention tool for volunteers? From my knowledge of the County Fire Service, it seems that more individuals are needed for the "major" calls, i.e. house fires, car accidents, etc. than just four paid staff members? How does the County plan to maintain the existing volunteers by adding paid staff members? I am not seeing this plan listed in the budget. If we have individuals willing to give of their time, should we not first implement a plan to maintain their interest?
I look forward to possible answers to the above questions. This news article opens up many questions in my mind, but I think that I will stop with this for the time being. As a Wake County citizen and taxpayer, I am interested to learn more from those with the knowledge.
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May 13, 2008 10:09 a.m.
In the old days, more folks were willing to volunteer. It was a sense of community service and pride.
Because fighting fire is an inherently dangerous task, the training requirements have increased. Gone are the days of just putting the wet stuff on the red stuff. The commitment a volunteer has to make is almost like a full time job.
Granville County doesn't recruit volunteers, the individual departments do, usually by word of mouth. What the county provides financially, is pathetic. The citizens and volunteers deserve better. Fortunately, many volunteers come from the ranks of professional paid departments. If not for these experienced firefighters, the situation would be even worse.
Wake County needs to focus on recruiting, training, and staffing fire departments with paid professionals 24/7. Anything less is unacceptable.
GOLO member since August 23, 2007
May 13, 2008 9:43 a.m.
To those of you that are still out there volunteering to answer the call, thanks for the service that you are giving us. Be safe out there, make sure you come back home.
GOLO member since April 23, 2008
May 13, 2008 8:58 a.m.
GOLO member since August 2, 2007
May 13, 2008 8:07 a.m.
May 13, 2008 7:47 a.m.
GOLO member since July 15, 2007
May 13, 2008 6:28 a.m.
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